


stop blushing (you make my heart go doki doki)

by daesbeanie



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Enemies to Lovers, Fluff and Crack, M/M, almost every character in this story is a weeb, mention of bullying, the whole story kind of makes no sense
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2020-10-08
Packaged: 2021-03-07 19:15:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26612806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daesbeanie/pseuds/daesbeanie
Summary: Chanyeol's supposedly normal senior year has been a wild ride because: his school was burned down, he's now a "delinquent", and his enemy has an obsession with shoujo mangas.
Relationships: Kim Jongdae | Chen/Park Chanyeol
Comments: 17
Kudos: 57
Collections: Shall we Chen? Fictional Fest First Round





	stop blushing (you make my heart go doki doki)

**Author's Note:**

> **Prompt #SWC424:** Jongdae is a prim & proper school prefect but he has a secret hobby: reading shoujo mangas. But one day his secret hobby is discovered by the school delinquent, Park Chanyeol and his life has never been the same. It's almost as if he himself is living the shoujo manga dream.
> 
> Dear SWC Mods, thank you so much for holding this fest and granting me a generous extension!! I will forever be thankful T_T
> 
> Dear prompter, this is probably not what you've expected because the Chanyeol in my story isn't exactly a 'delinquent', but I hope the little twist is to your liking!! To all readers, I hope that this fic isn't too cringy or childish for you and that you'll enjoy reading it. This is completely unbeta'd but I promise I've tried my best to edit by myself ;;
> 
> The locations in this story, except for Seoul, are all fictional and named after flowers. Haebaragi means sunflower and Mindeulle means dandelion in Korean. The manga mentioned in this story is also not a real distributed comic.
> 
> Before reading, please keep in mind that there is a mention of past **bullying** in this story.
> 
> Some Japanese terms that I've used in this story:  
> ▪ doki doki: sounds of quick heartbeats  
> ▪ shoujo manga: japanese comic aimed at a young female audience  
> ▪ banchou: leader of a group of delinquents  
> ▪ kun: suffix added to a male name, used for friends only  
> ▪ baka: idiot  
> ▪ weeb: a non-japanese person who is interested in manga-anime and Japanese culture (originally a shortened version of _weeaboo_ \- foreign people who are heavily obsessed with Japanese cutulre - but _weeb_ has recently been reclaimed/used as a meme term within the community)  
> ▪ kouhai: junior, same as dongsaeng in Korean

"You can go back now."

Jongdae sheepishly says as he steps in under the roof of the bus station. The rain is still pouring like it was half an hour ago, yet most of the students have already gone home.

"Yeah. I should."

Chanyeol replies, but he's still standing there looking at Jongdae with one hand keeping the umbrella still, letting the rain soak his left shoulder wet. Jongdae missed that before while walking with Chanyeol on his right side, but now he notices.

"Idiot, move your umbrella to the left. You're supposed to cover yourself properly!"

Just when Chanyeol finally stops spacing out, he finds himself getting pulled in by the arm and standing under the station's roof too; he looks as Jongdae briefly searches for something in his backpack's front pocket. When he sees the smaller holding up a tissue and leaning forward, Chanyeol waves it off with his free hand and takes a step back.

"Woah no need, I will change when I get home, it's no big deal."

"It is, you offered to share the umbrella and I didn't noti-"

"I insisted didn't I? Also, it's already sticking to my skin man, wiping it with papers wouldn't help anyway."

And there it is. The "Blush". Chanyeol didn't really pay attention to know if it was there when they were walking on the slippery pavement, but now that Jongdae is in front of him, he can clearly see how his cheeks are tinted with a faint shade of red. This counts for a success.

"Thanks," says Jongdae, directing his eyes at his own feet.

"You are welcome," Chanyeol shows a wide grin, "so, see you tomorrow Jongdae."

In the end, both his shoulders get drenched by the rain as he can't contain his buoyancy while skipping back to school, his umbrella swaying haphazardly. When he's finally inside the school's building and safe from the rain, Chanyeol pulls out his tiny, screen-cracked phone and types a text:

[17:48] Yeol the Banchou: mission completed. im getting my bag so see u at the parking lot in 5 mins?  
[17:50] bbh-kun: thanks god cuz im already fed up with my council duty!! >:(

Chanyeol closes the messages but doesn't put his phone away yet; he slides to his notepad app and opens the sole list which he created some months ago. Ticking off the "Walking under the same umbrella" box, Chanyeol once again smiles at his own victory.

It really is his own, since Sehun and Jongin, his reliable sidekicks in theory, did a terrible job with their tasks: Sehun was supposed to sneak Jongdae's umbrella from the classroom during their lunch break, but since he had no idea what it looks like and couldn't even recall Jongdae's seat despite Chanyeol's keen instruction, Sehun had grabbed a random one instead, which belongs to Chanyeol's classmate, Yena. They really were about to abort their mission but lucky enough for Chanyeol - or for Yena, both ways work - Jongdae couldn't help his kind-hearted nature and offered his own umbrella to her instead.

 _You have cram school_ , he said; _I can be in the student council room till the rain stops_ , he reassured her. It kind of irked Chanyeol to eavesdrop this conversation between Jongdae and Yena after the small president helped her search every corner they could, then ended up being the only ones left in the classroom. He's so selfless that it's annoying. He's so nice to everyone that it's sickening how it's only Chanyeol he's spiteful to.

So as to take his revenge, Chanyeol had to proceed with his antics. He then appeared out of nowhere after Yena's gone and offered to walk Jongdae to his bus station, whose part of the plan got a little messed up by Jongin: the junior had the task of preparing an umbrella for Chanyeol - since the giant rides bicycle to school and only ever owns raincoats - but the umbrella Jongin brought... it was a bit too small. Chanyeol only realized that when he opened it though; and so, with an umbrella whose size was only enough to spread over the tiny Jongdae and three-quarters of Chanyeol, the taller walked four hundred metres alongside the mighty class president, soaking his left shoulder which was peeking out on the way.

It's all fine though. Chanyeol can forgive his two _kouhai_ s for these; Jongdae seemed touched with his gesture after all.

Or not exactly "touched". Yeah, Chanyeol should never forget that to Jongdae, he's just a mere hassle. The prefect seems to only concede to Chanyeol when he pulls off those ridiculous acts from one stupid shoujo manga.

As to why Chanyeol feels the need to do this and even made a damn list on his phone, well, it's a long story.

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

Chanyeol and Baekhyun originally didn't go to this school. They technically live in a different town, a secluded area that's far smaller and further away from the province centre. Their old school's building could pass for a tiny block with a yard, and when its tawny walls got burnt black due to just one explosion of the breaker (the midnight fire of which was luckily put out before spreading), all highschoolers of the Haebaragi town were proposed to "temporarily" enroll in the neighboring town's school.

The Nancho town has quite a big school for an area that has the same small population size, thus the abundance of spare rooms; but despite the convenient distance between their houses and their supposedly-new-school, Baekhyun didn't want to go there. His ex-girlfriend from middle school time lives in that town, goes to that school, and God knows what her macho brothers would do to him if they knew the infamous heartbreaker was there to learn his "lesson" at last. No, Baekhyun definitely wouldn't go there in his senior year.

And there's the Mindeulle town. Three bus rides away, no old friends or familiar faces at all, but it was Baekhyun's best and only choice. Of course he had to drag Chanyeol into this, though he knew the giant would dive in head first after all; Chanyeol would die for Baekhyun if needed to and is way too adventurous. They ended up being the only two Haebaragi guys who enrolled in Mindeulle high school that year.

The all-but-proper students from their new school were not exactly friendly with the duo though. Objectively speaking, when they first walked through the high and grand school gate, Baekhyun's maroon mullet plus Chanyeol's lanky figure and his dishwater-blond hair left quite an impression. They weren't exactly the type to elegantly put on their uniforms either (excuse them, they don't have time for that, Chanyeol insisted on not taking the buses to save on money and Baekhyun had to continue being his passenger on the Park's veteran bike). And subjectively speaking, well.

All were scared of Chanyeol, merely because of a rumor.

Chanyeol and Baekhyun will probably never know who did it, but a tale was circulated among the students that Chanyeol was the one who set fire to their old school. Baekhyun would always cackle when he's reminded of it, but their peers ate that rumor up as if Chanyeol wouldn't scream when he saw a cigarette on a student's hand.

That's also when things took turn for the worse, or as the pair used to say, for the better.

Chanyeol has always been a financially prudent guy, it's almost as if he was born that way. While he's kind and cheery and often doesn't think twice before helping anybody, he tends to refrain from spending as much as possible, so as to not be a burden to his family. His parents had yet to meet their debt payments and were too stubborn (or too considerate) to raise the prices of the food from their small restaurant. Baekhyun wanted to help Chanyeol support his family, while at the same time not wanting him to give up the Delinquent title (he found it funny and wasn't willing to lose such source of entertainment okay), combining these two and he had this brilliant idea of putting Chanyeol's new fame to use and earn more for the Park's family business.

"It’s nothing wrong, alright? Bringing _eommani_ 's yummy rice cakes to school and asking the normies to buy them don’t count as bullying, in fact, that'll be you literally doing them a favor," Baekhyun had persuaded him, "just pull that face you always made when you needed to pee but our teacher wouldn't let you or something, you know what I mean. Live up to your new title and they won't make fun of you like those little shits from eighth grade. It used to be fun having classmates enjoy your mom's recipes, right?"

Chanyeol thought about it for sometime then decided to give it a try. He hated the idea of intimidating someone so much they would give in and do something for him, but like Baekhyun had said, it's just selling rice cakes (maybe with a teeny bit higher price; which was also Baekhyun's suggestion), he used to do that in middle school too but after being constantly mocked, he eventually became too ashamed to ride his bicycle to school with food containers on his back seat. This time, though, the same thing most likely wouldn’t happen. No classmate really talked to him anyway and maybe this would help ease his boredom or even gain him some new buddies; Baekhyun was right about his mother’s tteokbokki being the best thing ever after all. 

And so he did. It wasn't as difficult or awkward as he’d thought; his peers really were afraid of him, though maybe Chanyeol couldn't notice the fear in their eyes as he was too happy about his offers being easily accepted. Every day he would bring a few containers of spicy rice cakes to school, ask around if _anyone_ wanted to have it and charge those who said they did. Naturally in the beginning they didn’t just raise their hands voluntarily; Chanyeol always chose a few targets beforehand to _stare_ at while he oh so nicely asked. After a while Chanyeol didn’t even have to make a scary face anymore, the boys would just come to him habitually every morning.

Baekhyun enjoyed watching the stage he set so much, he even secretly submitted anonymous rumors to their school's forum on Naver, supporting the common belief that Chanyeol was indeed a scary guy. They almost got through half a semester effortlessly, even reaching the point where if the duo were sitting in the cafeteria and announcing that they were thirsty, there would be at least two guys rushing to the vending machine purchasing coke for them.

They had it way too easy and so Chanyeol felt like he was knocked for a loop, when Kim Jongdae finally came in and overthrew him.

For starters, they were actually classmates – Chanyeol and Jongdae, however, the latter was absent for the first six weeks of the semester as he had to prepare himself for the national academic competition and took supplemental lessons outside Chanyeol’s class. No one knew if he did well or not, but Chanyeol assumed he didn’t, since the guy was grumpy right on his first day back to school from Seoul.

“Where’s that _smell_ coming from?” was the first thing Jongdae had said aside from all the greetings at 7 A.M.

“You must be Jongdae,” Chanyeol had stood up, eyeing the guy from head to toe, decided that Kim Jongdae looked like a total nerd and that it would be no problem keeping him in track at all, “it’s really nice to finally meet you, I’m Chanyeol, the transfer student from Haebaragi.”

“Transfer student?”, Jongdae said, raising an eyebrow. He looked like he had no idea what Chanyeol was talking about, though at the same didn’t seem surprised to see a new face either. Perhaps, it was because he was too focused on the scent that was bothering him, the guy even subconciously stepped closer to Chanyeol until his eyes landed on the taller’s drawstring backpack.

“You bring… two bags? What’s inside that? It reeks of tomatoes.” Jongdae sniffed.

“It’s tteokbokki,” Chanyeol looked almost offended as he replied and crouched down to open his backpack. Inside were about six glass containers placed on top of each other; the perceptible red sauce indicated the dish. When he noticed Jongdae was staring inside for too long, Chanyeol became a bit nervous and blurted out whatever he deemed to be a playful mock:

“What, it’s only six weeks and you already forgot what goodness smells like?”

The way Jongdae’s eyes widened was almost comical. But if Chanyeol thought he'd succeeded in dauting Jongdae, he was completely wrong.

“Excuse me. Why would you need to bring a whole _sack_ of tteokbokki to school?”

“Uh… I’m selling them? To the other students?”

“Selling?!” Jongdae shrieked, and it came to Chanyeol’s notice that the dude had a hella obnoxious voice. “I’m pretty sure there must be a school rule that prohibits students from that. Actually, I’m certain it’s common sense that we don’t _do business_ in an academic environment.”

“W-Well no one told me that. Not even our teachers.”

“Now I’m telling you!” Jongdae proclaimed, hands perched on his waist, “the teachers might have gone easy on you, but they won’t anymore when I tell my uncle about this.”

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

Turned out this uncle of Jongdae was the school’s headmaster. Chanyeol had only seen him once during the opening ceremony, but by the courtesy of Jongdae he had been invited to the man’s office; Mr. Kim looked impossibly soft - a typical kind old man who would speak in the gentlest tone possible - yet despite sharing this harmless, mellow air with Jongdae, he warned Chanyeol of detention and demanded that he listened to Jongdae, whatever it is his nephew found faut with Chanyeol.

“Don’t worry, he won’t bother you unless you truly did something wrong,” Mr. Kim showed him a small smile, “Jongdae is a good kid and he has a strong sense of justice, it’s really not because I’m his uncle that he’s the student council president.”

 _A strong sense of justice my ass_ , Chanyeol once wailed to Baekhyun. To him, Jongdae was a petty jerk who held an irrational grudge against him and would smile and patiently respond to everyone in school except for Chanyeol. At first, after Chanyeol stopped bringing “delivery food” to school in accordance with Jongdae’s wish, he was constantly given a cold shoulder and occasionally a nose scrunch from Jongdae, like he himself reeked of spicy rice cakes or something. Then he was asked to redye his hair back to black, to always tuck in his shirt, wear his tie and uniform jacket properly, to _iron_ his clothes and at one point Chanyeol found himself always being greeted in front of the school gate by Jongdae in the morning, getting thoroughly examined by the prefect himself. What truly annoyed Chanyeol was the fact that Baekhyun was literally always on the bike rear seat, with his mullet and wrinkled shirt and sloppy attire, but Jongdae would either ignore it or kindly remind him of the “rules” (Chanyeol doubted Jongdae didn’t make all that shit up because _There’s no way the midget could spurt out rule numbers that fast like who the hell would learn these by heart Baekhyun?)_ ; it felt like Chanyeol was his only mission object though Jongdae claimed he wanted to check on everyone.

Of course, that’s not everything. Chanyeol insisted that Jongdae must’ve been obsessed with the idea he is a _real_ delinquent at that point. Well, it had been Baekhyun and Chanyeol’s goal that he seemed like one, but that’s in the past now, like literally perfect past tense; Chanyeol didn’t even dare to ask any classmate to help with his cleaning duty or carry his stuff like he would previously, but Jongdae was always on the look out for every single interaction Chanyeol had and his scrutinizing gaze was even more terrifying than any look Chanyeol could’ve pulled off.

_“I hope you didn’t make Jaeho carry the mats from the storeroom when you talked to him this morning.”_

_“I saw you speak to Jihoon in front of the school gate earlier, what was it that you talked about?”_

_“Don’t sit near Byungchul during lunch! He’s normally very shy… and his mom cooks meals for him just so you know.”_

Well Chanyeol thought that just because Jongdae didn’t want him to bully any of his precious buddies, it didn’t mean he should prevent him from making friends too.

“Can you even believe him? I also keep being assigned to more cleaning duties and he would always tell me to carry the documents before the teachers got a say in anything,” Chanyeol sighed exasperatedly as he flopped on Baekhyun’s bed, “He’s the bully now! That asshole! I hate him and whoever it is that told him I was harassing people, I’m not even half bad.”

“I don’t think it was one person that told him you were a bully, Yeollie, everyone in this school thought so remember?” Baekhyun said, looking amused, “But I must say I’m impressed how you still manage to live in his mind rent-free when the guy is just so busy. He’s too engaged in the council business yanno?”

Chanyeol hummed in agreement with a perpetual frown on his face. He didn’t appreciate that Baekhyun implied Jongdae always had him on his mind ( _ew_ ) but it’s true that the dude in question was quite a busy bee. It’s a given that Jongdae excelled in academics, he even helped his classmates with homework they had trouble doing (this obviously excluded Chanyeol), and as the student council president, he brought so much life to their dull and sluggish school. During Jongdae’s absence, the vice president who’s a girl from another class was only in charge of holding weekly meetings with no perceptible result. When he returned, Jongdae made sure to tend to all the requests and complaints that were forwarded to him, communicate with the school's administration – most often his uncle – and actively come up with fundraising events or discuss ideas with all the school clubs. He encouraged them to be creative and present exciting club activities; even took the time to supervise these clubs, consistenly either cheering the basketball team or showing up as a friendly judge at the cooking club’s monthly competitions.

He’s just amazing like that, if Chanyeol was to ignore how unfair he was.

“I hate him,” Chanyeol repeated quietly, this time a different reason, “he’s so hostile towards _only_ me and for what? You’re the bully’s best friend, you’re supposed to suffer with me too!”

“Maybe you did something wrong following the tteokbokki incident but forgot?” supplied Baekhyun, “Besides, I think he kinda likes me after I told him I knew the manga he was reading.”

“Wait, WHAT? Why? When and how did that even happen?”

Chanyeol sat up now, and Baekhyun looked at him as if considering whether he should tell him everything or not.

“The weekend after he returned from the city? I went to Jangmi since that town has the biggest bookstore in our province, and I saw Jongdae in the comics section. The manga he was holding was what I planned to buy too so I decided to strike up a conversation with him.”

“Interesting. So you’re saying you’ve been friendly with him all this time and clearing my reputation has never occurred to you, huh?”

“I’m not friends with him, Yeol, we never really talked after that.” Baekhyun shrugged. “And it’s not like I didn’t try posting the article of what truly happened to our old school, all the commenters just still doubted us. It’s rooted in their minds.”

“And it’s your fault.”

“Yeah it’s my fault,” admitted Baekhyun, “and I am sorry! I just wanted to help you sell rice cakes yanno.”

Chanyeol sighed to that and shifted in his seat. Then as if remembering something, he perked up again:

“Which manga is it that you both read though? You never told me you were reading a new one!”

“Uh…” There was an awkward silence as Baekhyun tried to think up an answer. “The high school life of a Maiden. Before you speak, no, I’m not reading it. I was buying it for Yeri. Yup. I never told you because I wasn’t reading any new one. Also kinda because you wouldn’t have time to read a manga nowadays anyway but yeah.”

Chanyeol squinted his eyes. Baekhyun was sweating.

“Alright, so you were buying it for your cousin, but why,” Chanyeol leaned over the shorter, hands reaching for the comic book peeking out under Baekhyun’s pillow “is it here in your room?”

“How-”

“I noticed the word “Maiden” on the cover as soon as I lied down, just thought it was a fuckboy handbook of yours or something.”

“Like I would read that!” Baekhyun shrieked. Chanyeol didn’t know which book he was alluding to. “I-It’s here because Yeri’s mom doesn’t allow comic books in her room. I’m keeping them all for the time being-”

Chanyeol had Baekhyun fuming now because the taller seemed to have straight up ignored him as he spoke, his doe big eyes glued to the comic pages. Baekhyun was right about Chanyeol not having time to read manga anymore, or at least that’s what they both had believed in, ever since seventh grade and the duo’s absolute obsession with _One Piece_. Chanyeol had busied himself with helping out his parents’ business almost all the time and he always spent his free time playing video games or strumming his guitar. Perhaps that could explain why Chanyeol’s brows kept furrowing as he turned the pages; he didn’t remember any manga’s artwork looking close to this. Unrealistically huge eyes, flowers scattered everywhere as the characters spoke, unnecassary clusters of sparkles and stars on their faces and especially of this lanky guy—What was the name of this manga again?

“The high school life of a Maiden?” Chanyeol mumbled, mostly to himself.

“The high school life of a Maiden.”

A beat of silence.

“I’m so going to expose Jongdae. I’m going to tell the whole school he’s into this pile of—”

“STOP!”

The book landed on Chanyeol’s face. Baekhyun had just pratically yelled.

“Stop, Chanyeol!” Baekhyun’s voice cracked so much that Chanyeol actually got worried. “You said you wouldn’t become a real bully! You promised us!”

“Who even is _us_?” Chanyeol scowled at him, “I never promised anything like that but yeah, who said I would be?”

“If you spread it, s-something so private… you would be!”, spluttered Baekhyun, “Besides, what’s wrong with Jongdae reading shoujo manga? Are you aiding toxic masculinity now? Bro I thought you were better than this!”

Baekhyun accusingly pointed his finger at Chanyeol, and the latter raised his hands on autopilot.

“No, I-! Can you please just slow down?” Chanyeol whined as he blocked a thrown pillow, “I have no idea what you’re talking about! And what even is toxic masculinity?”

“It’s you assuming reading shoujo is bad! There’s nothing embarrassing about it.” Baekhyun picked the manga up, touching the cover like he was carressing it, “You will never get it, Chanyeol, you will never get how touching _The high school life of a Maiden_ actually is. Maybe if you weren’t prejudiced and actually read it. This world could be a much better place if everyone read shoujo without judging, or feeling judged.”

The sentiment in Baekhyun’s words was a little bit too overwhelming that Chanyeol almost scooted to his side and patted his back. Somehow he just felt so sorry. Like he did something bad, and now he was feeling guilty. Yes, he still had no idea what the heck was going on, but Baekhyun was sulky and he knew he would never hear the end of it tomorrow if he just left this so Chanyeol manned up, taking the book from Baekhyun’s hand and,

“I will read it, okay?”

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

Turned out using half an hour of sleep a day to read manga instead was a… bad idea. Chanyeol was always a committed reader, but a slow one, that’s why even after four days he still couldn’t reach the second volume and he was _sick_ of the storyline. Most of what he had read was pretty similar to the details of a K-drama his mom and sister used to watch on TV, even though he always tried to ignore it or withdrew to his room. One could also say that Chanyeol was not used to romance-related stuff, or he was bothered by it. The exaggerated artstyle and confusing occurences in the manga which Jongdae (and definitely Baekhyun) read made it even harder for Chanyeol to bear.

The protagonist of _The high school life of a Maiden_ was a seventeen-year-old girl named Yui. She was poor but always had money to buy lots of snacks – apparently her biggest personality trait was being obsessed with pocky and this fish-shaped cake called Taiyaki – plus she was always wandering after school like she didn’t have a care in the world, which, Chanyeol totally could NOT relate. Yui was also a transfer student, she used to be bullied in her old school for being ugly but when the first love interest met her, the man faltered before her beauty and there were so many flowers and sparkles Chanyeol’s eyes hurt. Oh, was it mentioned the whipped guy was _just_ the first male protagonist? His name was Haru and he was the richest boy from their school who was supposed to have a really arrogant attitude. Chanyeol hadn’t caught up with the part where there’s the second love interest yet at that point, but he knew he soon would, because Baekhyun had excitedly told Chanyeol about him and the tangled love triangle there would be in the fifth volume as Baekyun pounced on the back seat. There were six volumes ready and two still yet to be released. Oh God.

On the fifth day, Chanyeol was finally prepared to read the second volume, but he wasn’t welcoming the idea of it at all. He still hadn’t got used to the slightly modified sleep schedule – losing thirty minutes of daily sleep appeared to be a bit too much – and he was a little cranky plus absentminded. That’s why when Jongdae approached him on the corridor during recess, all cocky and oppressive, accusing him of bothering his own _freaking_ partner in their biology project, something in Chanyeol kind of snapped and he slapped the wall behind Jongdae, trapping the prefect between him and the flat surface.

It quickly dawned on him,

Was it a _kabedon_ he just did?

He read the scene just last night; Yui was trying so hard to ignore Haru so she could quickly go and grab a melon bread before it ran out, and that’s when the male character slammed his right hand against the wall, towering over Yui and flustering her. Such act is called _kabedon,_ the footnotes had informed, and it’s named like that because the slap was supposed to produce a “don” sound. Just now the wall against Chanyeol’s fingertips didn’t make a sound. Neither did he or Jongdae. His sweat ran cold.

Chanyeol’s thoughts spiralled, he kept asking himself _why_? Was it because the scene was used as a cliffhanger and it got to him so much that he subconciously imitated it? Or did Haru just possess him? Probably not, because all Chanyeol wanted to do was to shut Jongdae up, not to gain his annoying attention. Oh God, now it’s Jongdae we were talking about. Chanyeol was still having his eyes closed. He was imagining what was going to come next. Jongdae might knee him in the nuts, Chanyeol heard he got a belt in taekwondo, or he might punch him square in the face. After that, his “Chanyeol is a bully!” agenda would gain a boost; Jongdae could report to the headmaster that he got “harrassed” and Chanyeol would go to detention for real this time. The taller shivered, he didn’t want to open his eyes and witness his downfall.

But it took Jongdae longer than just a few seconds.

Chanyeol finally peeked, and he couldn’t believe his eyes. Really, he couldn’t. Chanyeol let himself freely look at Jongdae; his stare wasn’t reciprocated as Jongdae let his eyes fall upon the tiles on his left side, his figure all small and cowered. Like he was so shy, like he was vulnerable being surrounded by Chanyeol. The taller couldn’t miss how Jongdae was so clearly reddened; his defined cheeks were tinted in a strong blush of pink, even his ears heated up and the way his teeth sank in his lower lip was almost endearing– No, wait, Chanyeol couldn’t have meant that. He really wanted to have no comment on Jongdae’s face features. Even when his long eyelashes were making him distracted right then.

“You– YOU IDIOT!”

Chanyeol felt a push, and Jongdae had escaped from him. Damn Kim Jongdae and his loudass voice; if there were already a lot of students watching since the _kabedon_ , now there was a whole big crowd.

But that wasn’t what concerned Chanyeol the most.

Yui had definitely possessed Jongdae.

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

When Chanyeol told his best friend about that incident later, even Baekhyun admitted it totally sounded like Jongdae thought he was Yui; of course not without laughing his ass off.

“I still cannot imagine Jongdae with all the frilly peonies floating around in mid-air but okay, you’ve been very convincing.” Baekhyun said as he wiped at a tear. “So he really blushed?? And shouted “You _baka”_ just like Yui would?? Man I wish I were there!”

“He didn’t exactly say _baka,_ but you got the point,” said Chanyeol, “Why are you so amused though? I thought you said you were against _toxic masculinity._ ”

“I am!” said Baekhyun. “It’s just that it’s too funny, considering how stiff Jongdae always looks like. I mean, I wouldn’t make fun of him if I were you, and I hope you won’t, but you cannot tell me you didn’t want to laugh when that happened right?!”

“I didn’t, Baekhyun, I didn’t.” Chanyeol sighed. “It was so… awkward! Plain weird. It’s the first time I’ve seen him like that and it’s nothing similar to my impression of him yanno? And that second when I looked at him… I felt… I thought…”

“What?”

“I don’t know, okay! I literally didn’t… know. Had nothing in my brain. He was silly but also so vulnerable, and maybe I was afraid… I intimidated him? Maybe weeks of tricking people into believing I’m a delinquent have made me instinctively one and now I’m scared. It was never my intention-”

“Woah now, you’re saying you feel bad for him?” Baekhyun snapped his finger before Chanyeol’s nose, “You should be glad he stopped bothering you that instant. Maybe pull the kabedon next time he comes nag at you too and he will run away one more time! Ah, this feels like the _tteokbokki era_ all over again.”

Chanyeol stared at his laid-back soul brother like he couldn’t believe Baekhyun just said that. But right, that’s actually more like Baekhyun; the whole stopping Chanyeol from exposing Jongdae’s secret must’ve never really been about Jongdae, it was more about himself. He probably didn’t want to feel itched if people ever made fun of Jongdae reading that book. Maybe Chanyeol had known this from the start, maybe not. Still couldn’t change the fact that he agreed to finish this series with Baekhyun.

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

Could he blame everything on the fact that he always listened to Baekhyun? When he thought about it, this whole mess was because of his best friend. Going to this school, selling tteokbokki, reading that mushy hell of a manga, and then: driving Jongdae up against a wall whenever the guy began to be a hassle. Okay, he had to admit that he’d done it because _kabedon_ had kinda worked. At least for the first few times. Jongdae’s reactions had been golden: he would get flustered and avert his gaze, then stammer and scuttle away. Sometimes he would call Chanyeol an idiot, but then his eyes would widen and his hands would rush to cover his own mouth. He’s very self-aware, Chanyeol had noted, but also quite obsessed with _The high school life of a Maiden_. And Chanyeol found that sort of cute- no, sort of pathetic. Because, who could even find a nerd cute?

Time flew and changes ensued. Chanyeol had wanted to resume his tteokbokki business at school; not for the money (since their restaurant recently got famous in Nancho the nearby town thanks to a review) but rather because some classmates had started to feel friendly enough to tell him they wanted to taste it again.

What made Chanyeol hesitate, though, was how _kabedon_ had lost its touch latetly.

Yes, Jongdae would still blush really hard, but now he'd started to look at Chanyeol in the eyes – which in turn got Chanyeol flustered because goddamnit his feline eyes were truly something else – and push Chanyeol slightly away so he could continue to threaten to _banish_ him. Although he'd never really done it, reporting Chanyeol to the headmaster that is. Maybe it’s because Jongdae finally knew Chanyeol was never an actual risk? Or he'd just been messing with him all this while after seeing how frightened Chanyeol initially was? It's all but just an act? Yet whatever the reason was, it was disheartening to not have Jongdae wrapped around his finger anymore.

It was disheartening to think about going back to zero.

When Chanyeol told Baekhyun about it, the shorter just shrugged, suggesting that he try out more scenes from the manga. Chanyeol probably could, that would be easy, until then Chanyeol had read four volumes after all; but was it even worth trying? There are chances that Jongdae was into only… kabedon. Which even now sounded a bit gross, but Chanyeol wouldn’t judge him. Ignoring whichever stupid ideas Baekhyun had to say, Chanyeol tried to figure out their relationship first. Jongdae had never trusted him, that everyone could be sure of, and usually one would think trying to be nice and understand your enemy would help you close the gap. Oh, Chanyeol could totally get used to being friends with Jongdae– the guy did seem nice, and he’s smart, Chanyeol would’ve loved to be _accepted_ by him. Though he also wanted to tease him. Till his cheeks got red, till he couldn’t think about raising his head and challenging Chanyeol. But right, baby steps. Chanyeol should be nice to him first… But how?

“Yup, how? He always ignores you doesn’t he?” Baekhyun chimed in Chanyeol’s monologue. “And there’s not much you can be “nice” about. He’s already too good at everything, he doesn’t need any help.”

Chanyeol heaved a sigh; he would have closed his eyes and put on a deep frown if only he hadn’t been riding his bicycle and there’d been someone to acknowledge his distress at least.

“I’m just saying, again! Get some ideas from _The high school of a Maiden,_ I know you think it’s sappy or whatever but there’s a thing or two you can copy.”

“I don’t know whether you really adore that manga way too much or you’re just looking for something to laugh about Baekkie,” Chanyeol didn’t see but he could tell that Baekhyun was trying to suppress a snicker behind his back, “but well, at least name an example?”

“Carry his books! His bag! Haru does this all the time.”

“Dude, I was always having to carry something for the teachers or for the class, and I only have two arms?”

“Well, since he constantly accuses you of making people do stuff for you, you may as well bully your classmates into assisting you for real this time!” chirped Baekhyun, “Just kidding, go to class early, ask your folks nicely so they will help you later while you go and court _President Kim_. Jongdae won’t notice your slacking if he’s preoccupied with his shoujo fantasy… Though I also think you should finally grow a pair and tell him how you think he’s unfair for assigning you so much shit. Wow, I just realized you’re literally Haru’s counterpart! You got intimidated by Jongdae once and now you’d rather be clowning around instead of confronting him for real.”

 _At least you admitted that Haru is a clown_ , Chanyeol thought to himself as he rolled his eyes. Not that he thought he was similar to Haru. Yup, it’s true that Yui once talked Haru down in the beginning of the manga, which is somewhat akin to Jongdae traumatizing him by sending him straight to the headmaster’s office, but Yui didn’t ignore Haru so much! He would’ve talked back to Jongdae every time he started, but Jongdae never left a beat for Chanyeol to chime in nor did he talk with any logic. Jongdae _detested_ Chanyeol, while Yui didn’t feel that way about Haru. Besides, Jongdae’s high-pitched voice was agonizing. There’s also the risk of going to detention. In conclusion, Chanyeol had all the excuses to not want to converse earnestly with Jongdae. It truly was easier to roleplay a fictional character around Jongdae to cope rather than talk to him, as strange as it may sound.

“Okay, I will carry his books if he will ever let me touch his stuff. Anything else?”

“Let’s see, there are some scenes that I particularly like… But on your own you wouldn’t be able to replicate them…” Chanyeol could just tell that Baekhyun was stroking his own chin, “I know! _We_ could help you!”

The _we_ that Baekhyun was talking about turned out to be Jongin and Sehun, the juniors who they unintentionally befriended with. Some of Jongin’s relatives live in the same town as Baekhyun and Chanyeol, and so when he invited his best friend Sehun to visit his grandma and went to the Park family’s restaurant by chance, they also saw Chanyeol there. Jongin wanted to just ignore him, but the other thought it would be interesting to find out why _the delinquent that was rumoured to always hang out with debt collectors after school and enjoy car racing_ turned out to be a good kid who was diligently waiting tables. Sehun made Jongin sit with him and two teenagers who were in the midst of their meal (aka two complete strangers) then did a mini-interview with them. After they were done, he came to the conclusion that Deliquent Chanyeol was indeed just a giant scam.

“Are you… Are you thinking of exposing him?”

“Nope! I’m thinking it would be funny to pal up with him. Plus whoever it is that was behind the posts on our Naver forum.”

And the rest is history. After knowing Baekhyun, Sehun decided that he liked this new friendship even more than he thought he would, although Chanyeol was initially really skeptical of him. They were both mischievious and liked to pull pranks, while Chanyeol and Jongin bonded with each other through their mutual regret over their decisions in life, specifically the ones they’d made because of their soul brothers.

They’d most likely become really close, because when Baekhyun sent Sehun a short message saying _He agreed to do it!,_ his phone immediately rang and Chanyeol could hear the younger’s laughter just a second later.

“You guys planned this?!” Chanyeol could only whine.

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

“How did it feel walking under the same umbrella with Jongdae?”

Baekhyun sing-songs on his back seat. The rain is much less heavy now, Chanyeol stops wincing at the raindrops landing into his eyes and frowns at Baekhyun’s teasing instead. The semester is almost ending; it’s approximately two weeks before their exams, their summer break and the release of _The high school life of a Maiden_ ’s last volume. That also means they’re about to run out of ideas. Chanyeol doesn’t feel so positive.

“It sucked.” Chanyeol clicks his tounge. “I absolutely hate it. He took up so much space and my shirt got wet. Now I can feel the plastic raincoat on my skin!”

“Oh, right, it sucked, huh,” Baekhyun says nonchalantly, “but at least he will stay soft-hearted and stop bothering you for a few days am I rite?”

Chanyeol silently nods. He wouldn’t tell this to Baekhyun or anyone, but these days it has started to feel like Jongdae no longer cares about oppressing him. It almost feels like he will stop in just a few days. Chanyeol’s gut tells him that Jongdae still hates him or at least doesn’t trust him, but at the same time he has been ignoring Chanyeol – ignore as in not even a single nagging, or any monitoring – and Chanyeol feels as if they’re drifting even more apart. Which is weird, because they’ve never been close in the first place. Maybe Chanyeol is missing the attention. Maybe he doesn’t like the fact that he has been putting in so much silly effort just for Jongdae to blush once, make him victorious for a second and then dissolve into emptiness. Were Jongdae’s blushes really that laughable? He thinks about this strange feeling he had earlier when he was bouncing back to school. Yeah, he did almost laugh. Hearing Jongdae’s soft _“Thanks”_ was so satisfying that Chanyeol thought he could fly. How shameful of Jongdae. It definitely was sweet revenge.

“Focus on the road! You shitty-!”

Baekhyun smacks Chanyeol’s back after the pair almost bumped into a tree. It’s not always that Chanyeol is like this when he’s not chatting with Baekhyun.

“Why aren’t you saying anything today? Is it the exams? Or are you worried ‘bout dealing with Jongdae after summer? Don’t fret, we can redo all the tricks.”

Another nod. Another long pause.

“C-Chanyeol!” Baekhyun stammers; the silence probably made him uncomfy, even though they were getting closer to their town, “I almost forgot! You didn’t tell me there was a _Sora_ in your class! Is that what made you worried?”

Chanyeol raises his eyebrows at this. _Sora_ is the name of Yui’s second love interest, a handsome and sweet boy who’s also a transfer student, he appears in the fifth volume in like Baekhyun said and has been tough competition with Haru so far. Chanyeol thinks about it for a while and makes a guess:

“Are you talking about Kyungsoo?”

“Yes! He’s from Seoul, right? And he transferred to your class like two weeks ago, but you never told me about him!”

“Well, two weeks ago I had to listen to you complain about the student council’s work and you hardly let me talk at all.”

Baekhyun apparently joined the student council shortly after launching the _Capturing Jongdae’s maiden heart_ project; it’s for information collecting, he’d said, but Chanyeol is pretty sure his best friend has this ambition of persuading Jongdae into hosting a school festival with fireworks and all or having the whole school go on a summer trip in a forest just like in mangas. Chanyeol wishes Baekhyun could just focus on his study since it’s their last school year, but then again, Baekhyun’s a genius and the only time he’s ever had to work hard is when all his ex-girlfriends from middle school decided to gang up against him and he had to run from them while also setting them up with his other male friends, who he deemed to be their perfect match based on his self-gathered data. Oh, now that Chanyeol thinks about it, Baekhyun definitely should work for the government or something; he’s amazing at reading and exhorting people.

“Right, Jongdae truly was a monster. He gave us event planning as homework but when I put forward my fireworks festival proposal, he declined it and made me stay to edit the others’ plans,” Baekhyun recalls, “I don’t get it. He’s supposedly also a _weeb-_!”

“And serious about his work.”

“Oooookay,” drawls Baekhyun, “now you’re defending him! Anyway, back to Kyungsoo, he’s your rival now, maybe after summer he’ll be promoted to the protagonist status!”

“What do you mean? The only similarity he has with Sora is that they’re both transfer students. Sora is tall and charming while Kyungsoo… he’s just small. And quiet.”

“Oh, he doesn’t talk to Jongdae in class?”

“Not that I remember, why?”

“They knew each other even before Kyungsoo walked into your class, that’s why,” says Baekhyun, “Jongdae told me about him, it’s just like in the manga! Ah, it’s me who thinks so, Jongdae didn’t admit that. Jongdae was running chords in town when he saw a puppy on the main street. Kyungsoo picked her up before a bike could run into her!”

“Oh?”

“They talked to each other after that, yanno? That’s just like how Yui and Sora met! Except Sora saved Yui’s cat from drowning in the river, not a stray dog from the street but yeah.”

“That’s exactly why it’s… kinda a reach, Baekkie.”

“No it’s not, can’t you see it’s also destiny?” Baekhyun snorts, “I learned all this because Kyungsoo is now a student council member. He and Jongdae seemed pretty… intimate, just so you know.”

“They can’t be,” Chanyeol refutes, suddenly feeling all fired up, “I mean, like I told you, they don’t even talk in class. A-and Kyungsoo is tiny! He’s not the Sora you think he is.”

“Oh my God, doesn’t that just make it all the way more…what’s the word, stimulating? They’re hiding their intimacy from the untrained eyes! Jongdae smiles a lot and has hearts in his eyes when he’s with Kyungsoo. You gotta see how Jongdae almost wrapped himself around Kyungsoo as he explained to him about his work…”

“That still has nothing to do with Sora!” Chanyeol squeezes the handbrakes; he stops his bike and turns his head to squint at Baekhyun, “This is not about the manga anymore. It’s more like you’re trying to imply… their relationship is something more?”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know, you tell me!” Chanyeol retorts, “Is Jongdae crushing on Kyungsoo?”

“Would you be fine with that?”

“Huh, no- I mean, what on earth are you asking?” the taller got flustered, “It’s none of my business anyway.”

Baekhyun hums knowingly.

“Well, I don’t know for sure. You normally act like you have the biggest crush on Jongdae but you don’t actually like him so-”

“What the hell? I don’t act like that!”

“Dude, Haru is pratically in _love_ with Yui.” Baekhyun shrugs. “I’m not accusing you of liking him or anything but at least acknowledge what you did. You acted like Haru!”

Chanyeol’s jaw drops at that. No, it can’t be- He has never thought about it that way before. Did he always look like he was having a crush on Jongdae? Does Jongdae think so too? Chanyeol can feel himself coloring up and he is just about to say something – anything, maybe whatever between denying and blaming Baekhyun for letting this happen – when suddenly a scooter passes and sends up splashes of water against his raincoat. They didn’t reach his face, but managed to shut his half open mouth up.

“Ah, figured it was you.” The scooter halts; Chanyeol’s sister turns her head to take a look at them, “Are you guys arguing? Be mindful of the neighbors will you? And Park Chanyeol you’re supposed to be washing the dishes right now.”

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

Since he couldn’t come to a resolution while Baekhyun was with him, now Chanyeol has to sort things out by himself. That does sound like a much better plan anyway, all this mess was because of Baekhyun and it’s high time Chanyeol did something about it. He’s not going to think about Kyungsoo, though, it’s not his main concern whether Kyungsoo and Jongdae will be an item; Chanyeol has recently stopped getting special care from Jongdae anyway and he’ll most likely be ignored when the president is all over the new “Haru”.

He doesn’t even want to think about it.

It’s just, he’s wondering, has Jongdae actually never noticed that he’s been intentionally copying sap from the manga? Chanyeol has had way too much fun that he didn’t really realize how he and his friends have never been the tiniest bit subtle about poking fun at Jongdae, and now that he does, he’s sure there’s no way someone as… sensitive as Jongdae could overlook that. Not like it’s a bad thing. Chanyeol actually likes the idea that Jongdae has noticed from the start and just been playing along, rather than Jongdae thinking that Chanyeol was _in love_ with him just like Baekhyun said. That also makes more sense, yup. Chanyeol shouldn’t worry too much, he should just stop this altogether. To hell with Baekhyun and _Capturing Jongdae’s maiden heart_.

Now, the next concern is should he confront Jongdae about it? Just in case he thinks Chanyeol was into weeaboo behaviors or something, which he definitely wasn’t. Imagine showing up at a class reunion in the future and Jongdae would then be the one making fun of him instead? Jongdae saying he had bluffed Chanyeol only to see how long the latter could keep it up? A big freaking no. There’s also an alternative of him not going to a class reunion at all, but even then, he couldn’t stand the idea of permanently being a legend of the Mindeulle town – _The Haebaragi Delinquent that was actually a fooled weeb._

Chanyeol sighs. If only he could talk to Jongdae with ease, he wouldn’t be beating himself up over this right now. He’s doomed either way: Jongdae thinking that Chanyeol has a crush on him, or Jongdae being big-brained and feigning shyness just so he could laugh at Chanyeol one day…Why must Jongdae hate him so much?! Chanyeol groans as he glances over his phone next to the sink. If he ever plans to talk to Jongdae about this before the latter could get anything out, he supposes he should go over the details from his memory, in case Jongdae asks him to explain any of it. _I wasn’t in love with you when I did that because– That scene was straight out of the manga and I did it because– okay, oooookay_ , Chanyeol huffs, _that was so cringe-worthy_. It’s reflecting what he and his friends have done first _before_ practice explaining himself in front of Kim Jongdae then.

 _“Reflect, let’s reflect,”_ he tells himself as he soaks another dish with foam.

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

**1.** Chanyeol always makes “bento” for Jongdae on Thursdays. That basically means lunch boxes, but Baekhyun sent Sehun to the city centre to buy a fancy bento box with five compartments and cutesy cutlery since even Jongin agreed that it would be more “shoujo” that way. Chanyeol learned how to make heart-shaped fried eggs and kimbaps on a low budget, which were not only for Jongdae but also the trio; the three kiddos said they would pay for Chanyeol’s groceries and have good home-cooked meals rather than buy plain dull food from the canteen. The drawstring backpack appears again on Baekhyun’s laps when he and Chanyeol ride to school on the old bicycle. Jongdae, for some reason, allows that. While Baekhyun and Sehun debated it’s because Chanyeol couldn’t profit from his own friends anyway that Jongdae was lenient, Jongin said it was thanks to the free food. On the other hand, Chanyeol stayed confused but happy, because Jongdae would always let his guard down and show a little smile when he saw the kitten faces drawn on the omelettes Chanyeol cooked. He turns out to not hate rice cakes like Chanyeol thought he did too!

 **2.** Chanyeol sometimes goes to school by bus just so he can meet Jongdae on his last ride. “Sometimes” means once a week, which was considered _a lot_ by Chanyeol, but his friends have convinced him with the extra naps he could take if he was to sit on the comfy cushioned chairs. Baekhyun obviously has to tag along, but is never allowed to sit next to Chanyeol on their last ride; the seat which Chanyeol always annoyingly put his backpack on is saved for Jongdae. At 6:30 AM every morning, according to Jongin who rides buses almost religiously to school, Jongdae would get on from his usual station and search for a seat next to the last row. That’s exactly what Chanyeol always aims for. The first time he did this, Jongdae’s eyes almost popped out of his head at the sight of the giant sitting at his favorite row, hand waving and face flushed red because he was too shy.

They usually do nothing while sitting next to each other though, much to Baekhyun’s dismay. Well, if they’d ever really talked comfortably at all they wouldn’t be in the position they’re in right now. Sometimes there would be small talk – Chanyeol asking if Jongdae already did his homework or Jongdae murmuring something about the weather – and sometimes they'd just sit in comfortable silence. Chanyeol never sleeps when he sits next to Jongdae, but Jongdae let his head fall on Chanyeol’s shoulder once. The taller really wanted to scream then because oh God- no, he was NOT overjoyed about the fact that the guy who hated him rested against his side, he just felt… smug because that’s what happened in the manga. He totally did not spend the rest of the ride admiring Jongdae’s long lashes or anything. Needless to say, when he nudged Jongdae to wake him up, the prefect reddened like never before – which is what Chanyeol considered his true triumph.

 **3.** The _“Fall”_ is Baekhyun’s favorite scene from the manga. Basically, Yui tripped in the corridor because a mean girl deliberately shoved her from behind, making her fall over and on top of Haru. Chanyeol didn’t like the idea of replicating such scene at all – he didn’t want to be either on top or at the bottom of Jongdae – that’s why he was actively objecting it, he really did, but he should’ve known better with whom he was friends. Even when he was sitting sideways on his own bike’s back seat and behind Sehun who was riding smoothly around their sports ground, Chanyeol still thought that the younger’s intention of learning how to cycle was pure.

He was just feeling so proud, okay? It’d been three months since he went to this school and being asked nicely by a _kouhai_ to teach them something just touched Chanyeol deeply.

He was just about to innocently praise Sehun for learning so fast, though, when he briefly saw Baekhyun and Jongdae from a short distance and Sehun swiftly took a turn – leaning so much and swinging so quickly that Chanyeol thought he was yeeted into space and but no– he just fell out of his seat after failing to grasp Sehun’s shirt in time and launched into Jongdae’s arms. He didn’t know how Jongdae did it, but the smaller only lost a bit balance and gripped Chanyeol’s biceps very tightly when his big head pratically plunged and almost hit Jongdae’s stomach, lifting him up strenuously.

“Park Chanyeol, no cycling on the school ground.” Jongdae softly warned before he left, scratching his little red ear.

Sehun – the apparent cyclist who might have won a race or two back in middle school, Chanyeol later learned – could only comfort him so much: “Sorry you had to take the blame, hyung, but at least there also was the Blush.” Baekhyun laughed loudly at Chanyeol.

 **4.** He developed a habit of always looking out for Jongdae after the latter loosened up his own strict supervision of Chanyeol a little bit. Jongin commented that it was funny how the tables had turned; sometimes the tenth-grader and his team would be playing volleyball on the sport grounds, having Chanyeol as a guest player, but all the older’s eyes could focus on was a certain tiny boy walking on the pathway. Jongdae always either carried a mountain of documents or holding a checklist of all the clubs he needed to pay a visit to, and Chanyeol would itch to ask if he could help. So first point – both Jongdae and Baekhyun made him like this, Chanyeol just couldn’t stand seeing a pile of books or papers and not being the one who carried it, especially when it’s in Jongdae’s arms. And second point – he needed to always watch out so the infirmary scene could happen. No, Jongdae wasn’t clumsy, and no, Chanyeol wouldn’t care less if the guy fell flat on his face – really, he wouldn’t – but just maybe… who knew… in case Jongdae really fell, Chanyeol could then laugh at his face and still carry him bridal style to the infirmary like Haru did, because that (probably- surely) would humiliate the mighty Kim Jongdae! He anticipated having Jongdae squirming in his hold, embarrassed as Chanyeol was the only one who could see his blush up close.

When it finally happened, though, Chanyeol didn’t have the heart to mock him at all, nor did he want to carry Jongdae princess style; he could only see the prefect from afar as Jongdae tripped on the slippery land, having just draped a sheeting over their class’s flowerbeds on his own. It was raining too hard; the pots could get flooded. Chanyeol watched as Jongdae silently stood up and made a beeline for the faucet nearby, not even grunting like Chanyeol thought he would.

“Why are you here? It’s our free period”, Jongdae asked, having noticed Chanyeol’s appearance as he finished washing the scratch on his knee.

“Baekhyun’s class still hasn’t finished, so.” Chanyeol said, “You’re the one who has no reason to be here.”

“I actually do. It’s my idea to plant daisies behind our building remember? I still hadn’t got on the bus so...”, his voice trailed away, “…What’s that?”

“Plaster.” Chanyeol replied, passing Jongdae a Pororo-printed bandaid, “Don’t you dare laugh.”

Jongdae snorted, a gentle _thank you_ hung in the air.

_Crack!_

A plate slipped out of Chanyeol’s hand as he was wiping it. This normally never happens, Chanyeol can swear, but a certain image of someone blushing as they smiled might have taken over his mind while working. He stares at the shreds, then at the blood that is pratically spilling from a cut on his thumb and decides to take care of the wound first. He searches inside his backpack which he put nearby on the countertop – the boy went straight in the dishwashing room without changing after he got home – and fishes out a bandaid. He quickly covers the cut with it, but then he stands staring at his thumb again.

The print is not Pororo. Instead, there are little Pikachus all over it - the bandaid Jongdae has recently given him as a “repayment”. Chanyeol subconciously grinned at the sight; it is somehow very Jongdae: always carelessly letting his soft-hearted side be shown, while making sure he wasn’t indebted to anybody. Chanyeol’s mind runs back to that day when the rain was a little too harsh. The bandaid which he had helped put on Jongdae’s knee and the one _blush_ he couldn’t forget. Chanyeol wonders why the memory feels haunting like it’s been a lifetime, even when the encounter was still recent, even when Jongdae hates him so much and Chanyeol thought he could no longer stand his own sentiment,

He may just yearn for Jongdae’s kindness towards him way too much.

“Yeollie?” His sister opens the door, “Did you break something– Oh, didn’t even bother covering it up huh.”

“I will clean up right away, don’t tell mom please,” His mouth’s corners slightly tips up, but the smile dies as quickly as it appeared, “Sis, do you have a moment?”

“Oh?” Yoora tilts her head, “Just as I was thinking something was off. Girl problems?”

“No- why-” Chanyeol stammers, “I… Actually, nevermind. It really is about someone I like–”

He pauses again, feeling like he was speaking with his heart in his throat. _Like you have the biggest crush on Jongdae,_ Baekhyun’s voice echoes in his head, and Chanyeol couldn’t deny it anymore.

He just couldn’t.

“Say, if someone I like… hates me. What should I do about that?”

“They hate you?” His sister widens her eyes, “How– I mean, are you sure about that? Or oh my God Park Chanyeol, did you seriously mess up?”

“I-I didn’t do anything wrong I swear, don’t look at me like that!” Chanyeol panicks, “I just- I just think there was a _small_ misundertanding. Or something. Yeah. And then they never changed their impression and prejudice."

“I can’t really imagine what happened between you guys that led up to them still hating you for no reason to be honest,” says Yoora, “but alright. Have you not tried changing their impression of you?”

“Thinking back, I’m sure I did,” Chanyeol sighs, “A lot of times, even.”

“Then I don’t think your crush actually hates you. I’m sure my little brother has conveyed his sincerity more than enough if he said he’d tried his best. All that’s left is you confessing to them.”

“What?” Chanyeol gapes, “How could you tell me to do that? I don’t want them to hate me even more!”

“Then what else can you do? What do you think people do when they like someone? Trust me, they won’t get angry at you just because you have a crush.” Yoora says, “Anyway, quickly clean up, I’m gonna head out before mom comes in and catches us both.”

He sighs, again, fingers still fumbling where the bandaid laid.

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

As much as Chanyeol dreaded Monday, the weekend felt like it was too long to bear. He’s had so much time and space for thinking that he believes there was nothing left to resolve: his feelings, what Baekhyun and his sister has said, how and when he should confess to Jongdae; he has inadvertently thought it all out. His limbs felt numb as he rode to school, but luckily Baekhyun has distracted him by talking about various stuff that wasn’t directly related to Jongdae. Indirectly, Chanyeol could pratically connect everything to Jongdae’s habits and Jongdae’s character – since he has observed and collected too much information about the president without even himself knowing.

When he walks toward the school building with Baekhyun though, the sight of Jongdae and Kyungsoo standing close to one another on the second floor has got his brain short-circuited.

“Oh, wow, look at the lovebirds,” Baekhyun coos, “This early in the morning! Leaning against the balustrade and whispering— hold up, Yeollie! Why are you walking so fast?”

Chanyeol doesn’t mean to ignore Baekhyun, but he couldn’t bear just standing there and witnessing the _Blush_ from Jongdae _._ So he can flush because of someone else too. Chanyeol has thought about this frequent irritation of his during the weekend and acknowledged it as _jealousy,_ making it no longer confusing to himself, however, seeing Jongdae’s cheeks tinted with a shade of pink from afar was truly brand new; it’s something Chanyeol has never experienced before. He stomps quickly forwards with annoyance until he can feel his shoulders slung over by a long arm:

“Good morning hyung, are you ticking any box off the _list_ today?”

“Mornin, Sehun.” Chanyeol replies, “ _We_ are not ticking any box off anything today. I’ve deleted the list on my phone and—”

“Wait, what?”

“And, as I was saying, there’s something more important I have to do. You and Baekhyun had better not plan anything weird because I’m really serious this time.”

There was no hint of snark in Chanyeol’s voice but the tall boy quickens his pace and heads straight to the staircase. He can see Baekhyun standing next to Sehun from the corners of his eyes, and though he does really want to ignore it, he can’t help but hear his best friend say _“It’s Jongdae, Chanyeol’s real upset now.”_

Upset? With Jongdae? Chanyeol could never, at least ever since last Friday when he realized that he’s rather dejected by the fact he was too cowardly, to properly approach Jongdae and to explain himself. Or maybe he really _is_ upset, but that would be more at how he knew his chance was slim but would still do something dumb and _important_ anyway.

It’s fine if it’s not like in the manga,

It’s fine if Jongdae will knee him in the balls, or punch him in the face,

Today he will confess.

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

[16:48] kouhai #2: hyung, didn’t see you the whole day.. where were you at lunch?

Chanyeol reads the message from below his desk; it’s true that he hasn’t seen Jongin at all today. It can’t be helped, all Chanyeol has done ever since this morning is boring into Jongdae’s back without having said a word to him, or mumbling incoherent words that are supposed to be his confession even during lunch when he just sat alone on the rooftop. Now that does sound like something Haru would do, even when Chanyeol was determined to give up on it, but whatever. Fresh air was what he really needs.

[16:49] Chanyeol hyung: wait, my class is still not over

Just as he’s done typing, the teacher decides to dismiss the class and everyone starts to gather their stuff. Maybe Chanyeol is imagining it but he can feel Kyungsoo quickly glance at him when the shorter stands up and promptly leaves the room. His main focus has always been Jongdae though (he literally could see no one but the little guy today), so Chanyeol keeps staring at him as the prefect walks up to the teacher and discusses about something. When he’s back to his seat, it’s now the first time Chanyeol has talked to him today:

“Jongdae, I have something to tell you.”

The president seems to be really taken aback as he jolts and drops one of his books on the floor. Chanyeol crouches down to pick it up, only to straighten again and meet wide big eyes of Jongdae. It feels like it’s been forever since he last saw him up close.

“W-What is it?”

“Well…” Chanyeol starts, “It’s something rather personal. Can you go with me to the sport grounds so we can talk? It will only take about five minutes I promise.”

“A-ah, I actually have to meet Mr. Lee at the teachers’ office right now, but if it’s urgent maybe you can wait for me?”

“Cool!” Chanyeol presses his lips together to show a tight smile, “I can definitely do that. So, I’ll see you outside the basketball court?”

“Alright.”

Chanyeol mentally congratulates himself as Jongdae puts all the books in his bag and leaves the classroom; the beginning is always the hardest, but he has done it. An hour ago he was still doubting himself and thought that maybe he should wait until the graduation day, since he would hate it if things became too weird between the two of them, but seeing that he can still approach Jongdae and the latter is willing to talk, Chanyeol thinks his sister was probably right after all. It feels right to be honest; that’s just how Chanyeol is. Things have always been weird between them anyway, and if idling around only results in Jongdae losing even more interest in him and becoming too distant, Chanyeol would rather risk the Blush. It’s meaningless if it isn’t aimed for only him anyway.

When Chanyeol turns back to his desk, his phone’s screen is dinging.

[16:51] kouhai #2: okay but i need your help hyung  
[16:53] kouhai #2: can you go the storeroom on left wing and find my bracelet  
[16:54] kouhai #2: i think it slipped out when i helped carry the equiments  
[16:55] kouhai #2: pls hyung i have club meeting till 5:45  
[16:57] kouhai #2: it mightve even dropped on the high shelves so baek hyung cant help  
[16:58] kouhai #2: its important  
[16:58] kouhai #2: its sehuns gift he will kill me if he knows its lost  
[17:00] kouhai #2: im rlly worried!!  
[17:03] kouhai #2: hyung?

Chanyeol rolls his eyes at the messages. He knows the dongsaeng has always been a bit overdramatic but the timing this time is just great. Right before the seemingly most important moment of his high school life— He’s lucky Chanyeol does have some time to kill. Jongin’s basketball club always meet at the court anyway so location works out.

[17:06] Chanyeol hyung: alright kiddo, you owe me this time

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

Chanyeol can’t believe he just got stood up by two people at the same time.

It’s quarter to six, he’s sitting at a bench near the basketball court with Jongin’s bracelet on his wrist, but neither the boy nor Jongdae were in sight. Hell, the basketball team isn’t even there, and Chanyeol knows one thing for sure that none of the teachers would’ve kept Jongdae for this long. Even if they did, he is sure Jongdae would have sent someone here to inform him about the delay – the guy is just that responsible. _Weird,_ Chanyeol can only sigh as he stands up feeling defeated. He has actually sent Jongin a message notifying him that he has found the bracelet; the spot was a bit tricky but he managed to find it on a dusty empty shelf (which was strange as heck because how the hell did the younger even “drop” it there?). There was no reply after a few minutes so he thought he should go and collect Baekhyun, who did announce early this morning that he would be in the council room till a bit late to finish some paper work.

When he’s just entered the building, he meets Sehun and Jongin in the corridor. Being the quick-witted and thoughtful hyung that he is, Chanyeol hides the wrist that wears Jongin’s bracelet behind his back and greets his juniors warmly:

“Oh heyyy glad to see you guys here. Jongin you didn’t answer my mess…” Chanyeol trails away as he notices how the duo share a look; both their faces have turned really pale. “Guys, what’s wrong?”

“Jongin, what the hell?” Sehun starts first, eyes boring Jongin and completely ignoring Chanyeol, “Please don’t tell me you actually left your bracelet there?!”

“What, was I not supposed to do that? I even hid it very carefully so he couldn’t find it!”

“Dummy you were supposed to lie about losing it, which means you shouldn’t have even stepped in there in the first—”

“Guys!” Chanyeol chimes in, attracting their attention, “What the hell is going on?”

The pair nervously peer at him, for once looking extremely apologetic.

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

It’s six o’clock, Chanyeol is pratically running to the storeroom he was just in almost an hour ago.

He really should’ve known his friends better; they are the type to always do exactly whatever you’ve told them not to do. Right after Chanyeol left them behind in the morning, Sehun and Baekhyun had assumed that the fake delinquent had decided to give up on Jongdae.

_“We just couldn’t let that happen”, Sehun has said, “You know how the cliffhanger from the seventh volume is Yui and Haru getting locked in the storeroom and— we thought it might be a good idea to set it up for you two. To talk things out or something. Baekhyun hyung was sure they would end up together in the last volume so— Okay I’m sorry! Baekhyun succeeded in luring Jongdae hyung in and is guarding the storeroom right now. I think he also doesn’t know that you aren’t there judging from his latest messages.”_

Oh God, please. He just doesn’t want Jongdae to hate him.

As soon as Chanyeol saw a familiar figure, sitting on the floor legs-crossed and immersed in some game on his phone with earbuds on, he skids to his front immediately and snatches the device from his hands.

“Who—” The boy looked up annoyedly just for his jaw to drop, “CHANYEOL?! Why are y-”

“Baekhyun, the door!”

Chanyeol needn’t say more words for Baekhyun to know what he needs to do. The boy promptly stands up, hand taking the backup storeroom key that is trusted to only one student – the council president – and opening the lock with it. Chanyeol barges in right away.

“Jongdae? _Jongdae?_ Are you—”

There he was sitting on one of the mats, eyes glassy as they meet Chanyeol’s. Jongdae was hugging his knees just moments before, but now he stands up and his expression is just so foreign. Hurt.

“This is your plan after all, huh?” Jongdae snickers, “Are you satisfied now? You must feel so proud now that you can laugh at me after fooling me, making me believe that you’re a good person. Park Chanyeol, you must hate me so much.”

Jongdae starts to walk past him, hand wiping his eyes.

Is it going to end here?

Is Chanyeol not a good person? He knows he is, but why? Why is it that he cares about Jongdae so much, but never reacts when Jongdae gets the wrong ideas of him? What kind of good person always falters before his dearest when they present their raw feelings to him? Chanyeol must’ve enjoyed being special, loved being the only one whom Jongdae showed his hidden expressions to, and so enamoured by Jongdae’s presence that he forgot he had wanted to clear their misunderstanding in the beginning.

But despite being so horrible as such,

Chanyeol would never want to see Jongdae cry.

“Jongdae, please!” He grabs his wrist, “Please, Jongdae, you agreed to listen to what I have to say.”

“What you have to say?” Jongdae’s voice cracks, and it hurts Chanyeol like nothing else, “I thought it’s enough said seeing how it is.”

“I didn’t plan any of this, Jongdae.”

The prefect halts his pull.

“Really, I didn’t. If you ask Baekhyun, he will—” Chanyeol darts a glance at his best friend in the light outside, who looks like a kicked puppy in the moment, then directs his gaze back at Jongdae, “Actually, no, you can trust me. I would never… make fun of you, Jongdae, let alone bully you or whatever horrible thing you think I’m capable of. You _know_ it _,_ Jongdae.”

“Do I, Park Chanyeol?” Jongdae bravely meets his eyes, “Then would you mind explaining why your best friend locked me in here? No, better yet, tell me why you always acted like- like we were in that manga and looked at me the way I never thought you could. You knew about my past, didn’t you? You knew and you used it against me—”

“What? No, Jongdae, I said I would never hurt you!” Chanyeol puts his hands on Jongdae’s shoulders, fingers trembling as they gently grip, “I didn’t tell Baekhyun to do this, he thought I was also here. A-and he probably did it because… he knows I like you. I like you, Jongdae.”

Jongdae squeezes his eyes shut.

“You’re lying.”

“I am not.” says Chanyeol desperately, “I like you Jongdae, I like you a lot. I admit that I took advantage of your reading hobby but that’s the worst I could do to you. I just wanted to tease you, to be around you and not have you angry at me all the time. I’m not a bad person, Jongdae, I was misunderstood and I made a mistake not explaining it to everyone from the beginning. I wanted to befriend with you, with our classmates and have you look at me with warm eyes. Do you even know how much I adore you Jongdae? I’ve started to become so selfish I even wanted you to be less nice to everyone and spend time with me. Only me.

Jongdae, can you open your eyes? Won’t you look at me?”

Chanyeol can feel Jongdae’s skin shiver as he cups his face. The long and pretty lashes that he admires flutter, and Jongdae’s eyes glint with something Chanyeol cannot put his finger on. Time feels like it streches forever, until Jongdae quietly speaks:

“I’m afraid of the dark, Chanyeol,” tears start to prick his eyes, “some stupid classmates from middle school once locked me in a closet. They also extorted money from me and I eventually begged to change schools. I couldn’t trust you because—”

Chanyeol pulls him into a tight hug before he could finish his sentence. Jongdae begins to sob.

“I’m sorry Jongdae, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know about it at all. I should’ve explained to you earlier, it’s entirely my fault.” Chanyeol rubs Jongdae’s back as he tries to comfort him, “I-it’s okay for you to doubt me, to hate me. Just please believe me when I said I would never hurt you. You’re amazing Jongdae, y-you have always watched out for me because you wanted to make sure everyone was safe. How could I ever want to make you cry?”

Jongdae nuzzles against Chanyeol’s shoulder and starts to relax after sometime. Chanyeol doesn’t even know if Baekhyun was still there; Jongdae is his only focus. Tentatively, he moves back a bit so he can see Jongdae’s face, hand reaching his cheek again. Jongdae’s skin feels warm against his, and even in the dim light Chanyeol can make out how his face is burning. Jongdae looks away.

“You really are an idiot.”

♡´･ᴗ･`♡

Baekhyun took the last bus rides, since Chanyeol’s back seat was already occupied by Jongdae that night. Chanyeol intended to ride Jongdae home, but since the latter suggested they stopped by a playground near his place, now they’re sitting on the little swings while looking up at the nightsky. The cool winds freshen Chanyeol’s mind.

“You know, I actually started to look into your background a while back and figured lots of things out by myself. You didn’t burn down your school.”

Chanyeol chokes on his laugh; that has taken him by surprise.

“And um- I hope you aren’t mad that I was nosy. After blindly restricting you for so long, I just thought I needed to confirm things once and for all since you never said anything yourself anyway. I… just recently knew that your family own a restaurant. I’m sorry I used to say that your tteokbokki smells.”

“You don’t have to apologize—”

“Of course I have to!” insists Jongdae, “I’m truly sorry, even though I knew you were never a bully I still accused you of locking me in when all you did was coming for me. I was out of it for a moment, and my insecurities kicked in again. I just have always been confused about your intentions.”

“I already said it’s okay Jongdae. If it makes you feel any better, I was at fault too for not coming clean, so we’re even.”

Jongdae looked like he was thinking before he nods, and they calmly start to swing in harmony again.

“So, are we clear about my feelings now?”

“I guess we are.”

“Then what about yours? Can we be clear about that too?”

Jongdae snaps his head at him, cheeks reddened.

“Are you seriously asking this?”

“Why not? You never gave me an answer.”

“Well you’re never going to get one. I’m not saying it.” Jongdae stubbornly says as he turns to his front again.

Of course Chanyeol is not going to buy this. He leaves his swing, walks to Jongdae and cups his pretty little face again:

“Pleaseeee tell me Jongdae, I really want to hear it.” Chanyeol puts on his best puppy expression, “Do you not like me? Do you like… Kyungsoo instead?”

“Kyungsoo?! Who told you I liked him?”

“Well Baekhyun said you looked like you do! And this morning he made you blush too!”

“But that was because- I— Ugh, I just don’t like him, okay!” Jongdae pouts, and since his cheeks are squeezed against Chanyeol’s hands, he just looks like the cutest baepsae ever, “It is you who I like!”

Chanyeol beams at Jongdae’s words. The taller feels so happy, he can’t help but want to press a kiss on his Jongdae’s cheek.

“I can’t believe it!” Chanyeol shows his widest grin, “How and when did this even happen?”

“You always look after me so well and now you’re asking me how?” Jongdae is almost whining at this point, “And I love _The high school life of a Maiden_! I like Haru specifically, since he saved his two timid classmates from the delinquents in the first volume, and because you’ve openly mimicked him so many times I figured you must like Haru and the manga a lot too. That’s what draws me to you and I’ve always wanted to talk to you about it.”

“Oh my God you are so pure.” Chanyeol gapes. Baekhyun really is a talented matchmaker after all, he must inform his best friend of this discovery and thank him a lot later. “You know what, that manga is everything. I can definitely talk to you about it all day. Let’s go buy the last volume together when it’s released!”

“Sounds like a date.” Jongdae chuckles, “But I think we need to head home for now. Isn’t it a long ride from here to your place?”

“Uh oh, you’re right, I’m gonna have to wash the dishes till midnight for sure.” Chanyeol feigns despair, and Jongdae adorably smiles from ear to ear.

Chanyeol has had the best of both worlds now: Jongdae’s Happy Blush that’s only for him.

_Earlier that morning_

“If you want to discuss the manga that much then you can just talk to me, you know I’m also a fan.”

“But Chanyeol he—”

“You like him, I know,” sighed Kyungsoo, “why can’t you just admit it? And stop blushing I don’t want people to see and mistake me for Sora or something.”

**Author's Note:**

> I promise the beagle line was studying properly for their upcoming entrance exam
> 
> Thank you so much for reading!! Please let me know if you liked it ><


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